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Romeo Must Die Review

The first two Mummy movies were a lot of dumb fun: lost cities in the Egyptian desert tombs full of mummies scarabs Scorpion Kings. The word “mummy” just lends itself to an Egyptian adventure. But setting the third one in China doesn’t really work. An ancient ruthless Dragon Emperor (Jet Li) and his 10 000 warriors who have laid forgotten for eons entombed in clay as a vast silent Terracotta Army just waiting to be awakened to wreak havoc again isn’t one’s idea of a Mummy movie. A Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon variation maybe but not in this milieu. The original Mummy heroes Rick O’Connell (Brendan Fraser) and his wife Evelyn (Maria Bello) are once again involved but it doesn’t make it any better. Even their now grown-up son Alex (Luke Ford) as a mini-Rick can’t help elevate the proceedings. The only saving grace is perhaps Michelle Yeoh as a sorceress who sticks around long enough to get her revenge on the emperor. Fraser has lost his Mummy edge. Sleepwalking through most of the movie the actor has only a smidgen of his former glory as adventurer Rick O’Connell. Maybe he exhausted himself by being chased by dinosaurs at the Center of the Earth who knows? And poor Bello who replaces Rachel Weisz as the feisty Evvie. It’s obvious she took over the role for a chance to do some action stunts but the actress is terribly misplaced and has absolutely zero chemistry with Fraser--as opposed to the cutesy sexy vibe Weisz and Fraser shared. Newcomer Ford seems inexperienced all around but it’s not his fault he has to spout clichéd dialogue at every turn. Only Li and Yeoh hold any weight as the talented Chinese actors are wont to do. In fact the Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh’s sword fight scene is probably the only reason to see Mummy 3. Director Rob Cohen (The Fast and the Furious) obviously has seen Crouching Tiger and Hero several times and feels mixing the Mummy universe with these Chinese classics would be fun. It isn’t. In large part the blame rests on the hackneyed script (by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar) which tries to drum up a troubled father-son relationship while trying to send the good old emperor back to the Netherworld. But Cohen is also at fault creating staid--or completely unbelievable--action sequences (Yetis coming out of nowhere in the frozen Himalayas for heaven’s sakes?). It’s clear Universal wants to continue making Mummy movies with perhaps young Luke Ford at the helm but this third installment may finally mummify the franchise.

Brendan Fraser and the long-awaited return of The Mummy franchise will likely unseat mega-hit The Dark Knight (Warner Bros) this weekend. Industry tracking points to a massive opening for the F/X-laden family-friendly action-adventure movie, and I am targeting $50M-$55M. That would be stronger than 1999’s original The Mummy, which grabbed $43.36M, but shy of the $68.13M start for The Mummy Returns in 2001. For Brendan Fraser, this would mark his all-time second-best opening.
ALL-TIME TOP FIVE BRENDAN FRASER OPENINGS
1. The Mummy Returns — $68.13 million
2. The Mummy — $43.36 million
3. George of the Jungle — $16.54 million
4. Bedazzled — $13.1 million
5. Encino Man — $9.86 million
Director Rob Cohen (xXx, The Fast and the Furious) has added worldwide superstar Jet Li (The Forbidden Kingdom, Lethal Weapon 4), which will pump overseas grosses. Domestically, this film should have no problem reaching $140M-$150M without breaking much of a sweat.
Meanwhile, The Dark Knight should continue its roll for a very strong No. 2 finish with something in the $39M-$44M range. This points out why it is virtually impossible for any film to ever unseat 1997’s Titanic ($600M domestic). The James Cameron-directed Best Picture winner held the No. 1 spot at the box office for 15 consecutive weekends, while The Dark Knight’s reign will have lasted just two weeks. Still, the The Dark Knight has an outside shot at topping the $400M mark by Monday morning.
Kevin Costner’s Swing Vote (Disney) is scoring negligible numbers in industry tracking, and it will have a tough time exceeding $10M. The Oscar winner, who took home the Best Director statue for Dances With Wolves, has a lot riding on this movie. He stars, produces and put up $20M of his own money to make this little movie. Realistically though, Costner has never been a huge box office sensation.
ALL-TIME TOP FIVE KEVIN COSTNER OPENINGS
1. Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves - $25.62M
2. Waterworld - $21.17M
3. The Guardian - $18M
4. Message in a Bottle - $16.75M
5. The Bodyguard - $16.6M
I have always been a fan of Costner, and he is especially good when he plays the flawed, reluctant hero as he did in films like Bull Durham and Tin Cup. This seems to be right up his alley. I am calling for $7M-$10M this weekend, but the 25 Plus demos, never Early Attenders, may give Swing Vote decent legs in coming weeks.
FINAL PREDICTIONS FOR WEEKEND OF AUGUST 1
1. The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (Universal) - $55M
2. The Dark Knight (Warner Bros)- $41.75M
3. Step Brothers (Sony) - $16M
4. Mamma Mia (Universal) - $11.75M
5. Swing Vote (Disney) - $8.8M
6. Journey To the Center of the Earth (Warner Bros) - $6.5M
7. Hancock (Sony) - $4.7M
8. X Files: I Want To Believe (Fox) - $4.5M
9. WALL-E (Disney) - $4.2M
10. Hellboy II: The Golden Army (Universal) - $2.65M

Barely remembered by his fellow countryman but revered to this day by the Chinese George Hogg was an Oxford-educated adventurer who led 60 war orphans on a 700-mile trek during the Japanese occupation of China to prevent them from falling into the hands of the advancing occupying forces. In director Roger Spottiswoode’s leisurely retelling of this heroic feat Hogg (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) is introduced sneaking into Nanking in 1937 to report on the three-sided war between the Japanese Chinese Nationals and Chinese Communists. Upon his arrival Hogg witnesses Japanese soldiers execute hundreds in cold blood. With the aid of Communist resistance leader “Jack” Chen (Chow Yun-Fat) and Red Cross nurse Lee Pearson (Radha Mitchell) an injured Hogg is taken to recuperate at a school in Huang Shi. Once better Hogg plans to tell the world what’s happening in China. But he takes such a shine to the orphans that he decides to stay as the school’s headmaster. Soon though news spreads that Japanese troops are marching toward Huang Shi. Hogg has no choice but to take the orphans on a months-long journey--with rough terrain and bitter weather ahead of them--to find a safe place to live and learn. Let’s ignore the fact that pretty-boy Rhys Meyers struts through the Second Sino-Japanese War looking more like a fashion-conscious playboy on vacation than a war correspondent dodging bullets and bombs. The hunkiest Henry VIII ever--sorry Eric Bana--downplays the onscreen Hogg’s evident superior complexity in order to react to the horrible circumstances he’s found himself in with the appropriate amount of fear compassion and resourcefulness. On the other hand Yun-Fat acts like he’s in Apocalypse Now. He gleefully spouts war-isn’t-hell Kilgore-isms even though his fervor and glibness are out of place in a film that treats the war with obvious grave solemnity. The tough-as-nails Mitchell does serve as something of a calming influence whenever she’s around Yun-Fat. Unfortunately sparks don’t fly between Mitchell and Rhys Meyers making it impossible to buy into their perfunctionary romance. Honestly Rhys Meyers generates more heat with the sublimely regal Michelle Yeoh whose black marketer is taken with this most charming customer. Too bad Yeoh doesn’t share any moments with her Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon costar Yun-Fat. Of the orphans the stone-faced Guang Li makes the greatest impression as a warrior among children who rightfully fears Hogg will usurp his authority. “We’re all something different in China ” Pearson tells Hogg. That certainly holds true for Hogg. Beyond serving as a CliffsNotes-style history lesson in the Second Sino-Japanese War The Children of Huang Shi asks what it takes during a time of conflict to transform an observer to a participant a pacifist to an advocate of war. Actually it doesn’t take much for the reporter portrayed here to abandon his personal and professional principles. Even if director Roger Spottiswoode pulls no punches whenever he places Hogg in harm’s way our hero’s swift conversion from impartial bystander to unlikely savior would still probably be laughed at by the hardened war correspondents in the director’s superior Under Fire. Sadly after depicting the horrors of war with bloody and brutal honesty Spottiswoode falls into the trap of presenting Hogg as the all-knowing all-sage Westerner out to rescue 60 “savages” not just from the Japanese but from themselves. The students don’t teach anything of value to Hogg. Even his relationships with a select few students aren’t as fully explored as those he shares with Pearson and Chen. That’s not to say that the much-anticipated journey across the Gobi Desert isn’t inspirational. It is even if it seems more rushed and less eventful than expected. The Children of Huang Shi isn’t as powerful or compelling as Schindler's List but there’s no denying that it may help Hogg receive the recognition he deserves outside of China for his selfless actions during a war that he had no vested interest in.

How refreshing that Chan’s gone public in dismissing John Fusco’s script to this fantasy epic as unimpressive. He’s right. But what difference does it make when all we want to see is Chan and Li kicking butt? And The Forbidden Kingdom offers plenty of opportunities for them to do just that. So what whimsy excuse has Fusco and director Rob Minkoff come up with to unite Chan and Li? Well they have essentially fused the Chinese literary classic Journey to the West--which features the mythical hero Monkey King--with A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court. Only this time Mark Twain’s “curious stranger” happens to be a wimpy kid (Michael Angarano) who’s whisked back in time to ancient China with the aid of the magical staff belonging to the Monkey King (Li). For no other reason than to pander to American audiences Jason’s charged with the task of freeing a trapped-in-stone Monkey King from the grasp of the powerful Jade Warlord (Collin Chou). Jason may possess a Quentin Tarantino-esque knowledge of kung fu movies but he’s no Bruce Lee. Enter Lu Yan (Chan) and the Silent Monk (Li again) two mighty warriors who not only join Jason’s quest to defeat the Jade Warlord but also make like Mr. Miyagi to train him in the way of the martial arts. Chan rehashes his Drunken Master shtick so there’s much humor to be found in his wine-guzzling immortal’s efforts to vanquish his foes while fighting under the influence. And as usual Chan makes inventive use of the props that he gets in his hands. He even shows off his aerobatic moves while caked in old-geezer makeup as the owner of the store where Jason finds the staff. As the Monkey King and the Silent Monk Li throws more punches than he utters lines of dialogue. Li though has twice as much fun as Chan with his two different roles. The Silent Monk lives up to his name but when the action starts the wushu-trained Li comes across as stronger swifter and nimbler than the older Chan. Looking very much like Curious George with his pulled-back hair and lengthy sideburns Jet Li reveals a charming playfulness as the giggling Monkey King that we’ve not seen in his Hollywood-produced bloodbaths. Angarano though is bland and boring. He’s Shia LaBeouf without the personality depth or comic timing. Yifei Liu as the vengeful Golden Sparrow proves to be as much a lethal weapon as her male counterparts. Decked out like Halle Berry in X-Men Li Bingbing is delightfully malicious as Golden Sparrow’s nemesis Ni Chang. She also exudes more menace than the oily Chou. So it remains unsettled as to who would emerge victorious if Jackie Chan and Jet Li duked it out for bragging rights (my money’s on Li because his characters possess a killer instinct that Chan’s nice guys lack). But director Rob Minkoff--responsible for The Lion King and Stuart Little--knows what’s important when it comes to The Forbidden Kingdom . It’s all about the big brawls baby. With the invaluable assistance of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon marital arts choreographer Woo-Ping Yuen Minkoff ensures that Chan and Li are always busy doing what they do best. He doesn’t reign in Chan and Li--whose easy rapport is evident from the beginning--or cut short the furiously executed skirmishes that boast everything from stick fighting to wire fu. Then again that only appropriate considering The Forbidden Kingdom sets itself up from its funky opening credits as a homage to Hong Kong action cinema. Still The Forbidden Kingdom does grind to a halt whenever Chan and Li take a breather. The story’s tired and predictable the dialogue’s grating and the comedy’s forced--though it’s quite amusing and cathartic to watch Chan and Li knock around the ineffectual Jason. For all its flaws though The Forbidden Kingdom offers the priceless spectacle of Chan and Li kung fu fighting. And those cats really are as fast as lightning.

Wonder what Hannibal Lecter (Gaspard Ulliel) was like as a boy? Well even as a youngster he had a keen interest in (eating) human anatomy but as we see in Hannibal Rising he wasn’t born a cannibal. It all started in World War II Lithuania where a young Hannibal is left an orphan after he watches his whole family die at the hands of war criminals. In the eight years that pass only the hope of revenge has kept him afloat. After escaping the orphanage at which he was bullied Hannibal finds his uncle’s Japenese widow Lady Murasaki (Gong Li) who lives in a similarly lonesome state. They strike up a very close bond in which she helps him tap into the memory of his family’s death--most importantly and painfully his young sister’s--while he more or less let’s her live. Not the case for those who wronged him but hot on Hannibal’s murderous trail is a French inspector (Dominic West) who both sympathizes with and greatly fears the madman-child Lecter. And given that Anthony Hopkins has thrice played a grown-up Hannibal and Brian Cox once everyone should know how this prequel ends. With Anthony Hopkins having lent his unmistakable visage to his now iconic Lecter no actor would be given a fair chance to do the same for a young Hannibal. Ulliel (A Very Long Engagement) often tries his darndest to contort his makeup-scarred face so that it alone will frighten viewers but an actor either looks like a psychopath or doesn’t; Hopkins with the utmost respect looks like a straightjacket escapee whereas Ulliel looks like an over-exerting actor. Forced scowl aside he’s creepy as a near mute in the movie but it’s almost impossible to believe that this is the young man who would go on to become Hopkins’ Lecter. Li (Miami Vice) looks incredible and easily 20 years younger than her actual age. She does what she can with her mysterious and emotionally stunted Lady Murasaki but it’s an odd character to begin with. In a supporting role Englishman West (HBO’s The Wire) adds a needed subtle performance and fits well alongside the past lawmen in the Hannibal series and Rhys Ifans as a villain continues his trend of unpredictable role choices. Hannibal Rising is astonishingly the fifth installment in a franchise that truly lost its luster after Silence of the Lambs and the neglected Manhunter. Of course the franchise is only kaput if the latest doesn’t make enough money but this should have been stopped years ago—at least as a movie series. As novels the saga is much more sustainable because author Thomas Harris who makes his Lecter screenplay debut with Rising can get away with murder (no pun intended). But while Rising is far from over the top director Peter Webber (Girl with a Pearl Earring) and Harris can’t make the movie nearly as tense as any of its novel or film predecessors. Webber is an editor-turned-director and it shows: The film is masterfully shot by Ben Davis (Layer Cake) and put together by the director but once Webber gets down to the movie’s blood and guts (pun intended this time) he can’t deliver much excitement at all. Ultimately Webber takes his restraint too far.

In the beginning of Happy Feet you might think a handful of moviegoers forgot to silence their cell phones; it’s just the emperor penguins singin’ their beaks off to one of any number of songs popular circa 2003. In Antarctica that’s how they stick together--it’s how they harmonize so to speak. But with the birth of one penguin Mumble (voiced by Elijah Wood) the whole colony is shaken up. Mumble has the voice of a puberty-stricken boy and is unable to keep a tune but he can dance like the dickens! His mother Norma Jean (voiced by Nicole Kidman) thinks it’s a cute habit but his father (voiced by Hugh Jackman) and the rest of the tight-knit community ostracize him. After toiling around a while with his new buddies (of which two are voiced by Robin Williams) some of whom are “Latino penguins ” Mumble realizes his only chance at redemption is to find the source of the penguins’ current fish famine--and he’ll stop at nothing not even “aliens." Robin Williams is quite the odd bird himself. Nowadays--movie-wise at least--he’s better heard and not seen (i.e. voice-over roles like this one) whereas his mile-a-minute physicality was once a necessary evil to get the full 3-D effect of his personality. His animated self obviously less in-your-face Williams’ dialogue does all the work in Feet and gives a performance that matches his beloved Aladdin Genie. Frodo alert: Wood also starring in this weekend’s Bobby hits all the er wrong notes to turn in a solid performance as the movie’s lead Mumble. Since he sounds (and looks) much younger to most people than his actual age (25) it’s another in his long line of impeccable role choices. As the unattainable object of Mumble’s affection Brittany Murphy stars as Gloria a character that if nothing else allows the actress to display her singing talents as a preview of her reported upcoming album. (Yes seriously.) The biggest names Kidman and Jackman with small parts don’t offer much besides superficial mainstream appeal but bit parts from Hugo Weaving Anthony LaPaglia and the late Steve Irwin round out the formidable cast with some zing. Penguins have long been ripe for the animating what with their waddling clumsiness and stuffed-animal cuteness. March of the Penguins outed them as lovable misunderstood Antarctic creatures Madagascar turned them into ‘toon comedians and now Feet director and co-writer George Miller (Mad Max) gives them the full treatment by animating and literally humanizing them. Miller’s labor of love which he’d deliberated over for some time encompasses all the kiddie messages we’ve come to expect while managing to toss in the rare animation curveball: ecological themes. Miller is clearly an animal lover--he also wrote and produced Babe--a passion he ties into the film without forcing. But the animation nonstop musical numbers and technical aspect of the film will truly and pleasantly surprise you. In fact a few scenes in particular involving humans juxtaposed with animated penguins make for memorable images--and messages. He and his team of co-writers Warren Coleman John Collee and Judy Morris also formulate typically quicker-witted dialogue for the primarily Aussie cast but it’s the overall heartwarming tale and execution thereof that’ll have you smiling all movie long.

Martial-arts superstars Jackie Chan and Jet Li will face off for the first time on the big screen in a new feature film.
The two martial-arts experts have long said they would like to appear in a film together and fight each other.
Li is set to play two roles, that of the monkey king and the silent monk, while Chan will play the monk T'Sa-Ho in the as-yet-untitled family movie, which will begin shooting in April.
The script is based on the legend of the monkey king and his quest to achieve immortality.
Article Copyright Entertainment News Network All Rights Reserved.

Today’s club-goers may not know that Miami with its decadent skyline was once America’s most violent city built up by the Carter and Reagan-era cocaine street wars. This Billy Corben-helmed documentary explains that with the volatile influx of Colombian cocaine and imprisoned Cuban refugees (fictionalized infamously in Al Pacino’s Scarface) in the ‘70s and ‘80s billion of dollars were laundered through local banks--and thousands of people were left dead. Time magazine tagged it “Paradise Lost.” Corben compares these “cocaine cowboys” to the Old West cowboys or 1930’s Chicago Prohibitionist-era thugs. In Cocaine Cowboys key criminal underworld players--the killers fugitives cops and kooks—talk about the experience. Each has an eye glimmer of hardened reality frozen by the bloodied heads splayed apart by gunfire--images shown unmercifully in photographs. For example a two-year-old boy killed in a shootout is pictured in his casket. The tales are chilling as kingpins give instructions to butcher troublemakers lending grim humanity to this recent chapter in American history beyond “Say hello to my li’l friend.” In this docu everyone is telling his/her own real crazy tale and each story is fascinating in tragic ways. An imprisoned contract killer Jorge “Rivi” Ayala illuminates the psychopathic killing of his boss Godmother Griselda Blanco Miami’s most notorious cocaine kingpin of that era who is thought to have killed more than 200 people. A skilled backwoods troublemaker Micky Munday recounts escaping into the Everglades and living as a fugitive for six years to evade the Feds. The main storyteller Jon Roberts has $2 billion in drug trafficking to his credit and a Dennis Farina-like mustache. Roberts’ stories take us inside his world despite the fact he doesn’t have the most moral of compasses. Peripheral characters such as Miami Herald reporter Edna Buchanan lend sober credibility to the excesses. All characters are typically seedy with aged faces bad skin and grizzled voices which bespeak their real-life drama. Cocaine Cowboys unfortunately runs a little long and is a bit underdeveloped in its thesis of how cocaine built Miami. We see the bloodshed and violence but we don’t see the direct link of cocaine-laundered money buying the city’s wealth. And the story could have been told in 100 minutes or less. Nonetheless Cocaine is an engaging docu even if not completely mature in its convictions. Kudos to 28-year-old director (and Miami native) Billy Corben for rounding up the movie’s rascals and getting them to talk. Corben also digs up mounds of archival footage and culls hours of interviews which is Cocaine’s selling point and creates a signature jumpy visual style similar to reality TV.Miami Vice composer Jan Hammer is also enlisted for Cocaine’s score giving it a post-modern authentic feel. Thanks to Scarface and Miami Vice’s ubiquity we all know the story of South Florida cocaine. Cocaine Cowboys gives the lore some localized lived-in humanity.

Based on the best-selling novel by Arthur Golden Geisha guides us into this fascinating Japanese subculture. Set in the late 1920s the story begins with 9-year-old Chiyo (Suzuka Ohgo) being forced to leave her family and work in a geisha house. Although strikingly beautiful with slate blue eyes Chiyo has no interest in the lifestyle especially since she is cruelly treated by the jealous geisha Hatsumomo (Gong Li). But that changes after she meets and falls for the good-hearted Chairman (Ken Watanabe). After he shows her kindness she decides becoming a geisha will be her ticket to being with him. Under the tutelage of mentor Mameha (Michelle Yeoh) Chiyo blossoms into the legendary geisha Sayuri (Ziyi Zhang) who captivates the most powerful of men. Still she secretly hopes the man who once showed her compassion will come and take her away. Sweeping unrequited love? You bet! There’s been some flack over the fact Chinese actresses Gong Li Michelle Yeoh and Ziyi Zhang are playing Geisha ’s core characters--speaking English with Japanese accents no less. But it’s quite obvious from the start that these three stunning women are absolutely the best choices. Gong (Raise the Red Lantern) is deliciously wicked as the green-eyed Hatsumomo who simply resents the life she’s chosen and takes it out on those around her. Yeoh plays Mameha as a wise and motherly figure similar to the role she portrayed in Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. It’s Ziyi though who once again transfixes us as the determined Sayuri. Having to learn English for the role the language barrier does seem at times to hinder that fierceness in the actress which we’ve come to love in films such as Crouching Tiger and House of Flying Daggers. But there’s an unparalleled grace to this young actress and she makes Geisha her own. With these three strong turns you don’t need any men--but it should be noted that Watanabe (The Last Samurai) does a fine job as the dashing romantic lead. One wonders what producer Steven Spielberg who was long attached to direct would have done with his dream project. Luckily Chicago’s Rob Marshall fills in nicely elegantly detailing this captivating but vanishing Japanese custom in which a geisha transforms herself from an ordinary woman with feelings to a delicate butterfly who arms herself with self-sufficient charm. The film is also breathtakingly scenic with arresting contrasts in colors fueled by spectacular costume designs by the Oscar-winning Colleen Atwood. Still Geisha may be tagged by some as boring Oscar fare á la The English Patient (I can just hear Seinfeld’s Elaine now). But for those of us who enjoy being taken to another place and time it’s a real treat.